In recent months, the cost of living crisis has curbed spending on non-essential items, however industry commentators are optimistic that the second half of 2024 will prove to be a lot more fruitful for online retailers, particularly across the peak trading period. Consumer confidence is rising, and interest rates are falling, which means brands will be pulling out all the stops to capture gifting spends.

To make sure your business is among the season’s winners, here we share a summary of top tips from our digital marketing experts, however you can find even more advice and insights in our new industry report:Make Golden Quarter 2024 shine. 

Sleigh your socials

Social selling is set to soar, and so far this year we’ve already seen a 30% rise in shoppers utilising social commerce tools, with TikTok delivering a 200% uplift in live commerce usage. 

To leverage this trend, create festive content that speaks to gift givers rather than just those looking to treat themselves, and make sure to take advantage of platform tools such as Advantage+ in Meta for more refined targeting. You should also aim to offer genuine insights and helpful overviews of your products to appeal to the 50% of shoppers who use social channels to research and evaluate items before they buy. 

Spruce up your ads

Make full use of the Pay Per Click performance tools that are already available for Search and Performance Max campaigns, and ensure that your sales and discounts are front and centre of your ads as it’s likely that pricing will be fiercely competitive this year.

To encourage click-throughs to your online store, you should also look to showcase your brand’s USPs, and ensure that relevant audiences and first party data are built into your campaigns so you can remarket to shoppers later in their purchasing journey.

Continual measurement and optimisation of your campaigns is also key, to make sure you maximise return on spend. 

Deck the marketplaces

With around half of all orders expected to be placed via marketplaces this festive season, it’s vital that you’re ready to leverage the immense popularity of platforms such as Amazon and eBay. Advertising and enhanced listings are must-haves for merchants, and you should consider boosting interest in your products via available AR functionality, enabling shoppers to view items in situ across their living spaces.

Realistically, product and delivery prices make all the difference on marketplaces, however you can look to engage consumers by offering product bundles and sets, which can increase AOV and set you apart from other brands.

Spread some inbox joy

In the run up to Christmas, savvy shoppers tend to sign up for newsletters to make sure they’re the first to hear about offers and sales, which means you need to capitalise on increased engagement levels. Reward the interest and loyalty of your email subscribers with special deals or sneak previews, and use automation to step up personalisation and make shoppers feel more valued.

It’s also important to adhere to GDPR guidelines and keep on top of your list cleansing to make sure you’re targeting the right people, and rather than bombard audiences with a flurry of messages, aim to build steady contact as part of carefully planned campaigns.

Give the gift of content

As the least reactive channel, SEO tends to be shaped by last year’s performance so utilise all available sources of data and trends - including Google, Pinterest, YouTube and TikTok - to make adjustments to your site content in time for peak trading. Shoppers are often looking for help and suggestions when it comes to buying for others, so look to highlight gift guides, buying recommendations, and relevant advice wherever possible.

If you haven’t already, you should also enhance any popular site pages that can offer an improved experience to shoppers, and incorporate seasonal  keywords such as Winter, BFCM or Christmas across your sales area. 

Unlock more expert marketing tips and in-depth consumer insights for the peak trading period  Download your free copy of our latest report, Make Golden Quarter 2024 shine, today.